Die casting machine with cruciform die guide and pivotally mounted pot and nozzle



Feb. 17, 1970 .G PERRELLA 3,495,652

DIE CASTING MACHINE WITH GRUCIFORM DIE GUIDE AND Fil ed May :5, 1967 PIVO'IALLY MOUNTED P-OT AND NOZZLE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 G. PERRELLA Feb. 17, 1970 DIE CASTING MACHINE WITH CRUCIFORM DIE GUIDE AND PIVOTALLY MOUNTED PUT AND NOZZLE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 3, 1967 Feb, 17, 1970 c. PERRELLA 3,495,652

DIE CASTING MACHINE WITH CRUCIFORM DIE GUIDE AND PIVOTALLY MOUNTED POT AND NOZZLE Filed May 5, 1967 I5 Sheets-Sheet 3 United States Patent 3,495,652 DIE CASTING MACHINE WITH CRUCIFORM DIE GUIDE AND PIVOTALLY MOUNTED POT AND NOZZLE Guido Perrella, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, assignor to Dynacast Limited, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Filed May 3, 1967, Ser. No. 635,867 Claims priority, applicatgoil 0Canada, Feb. 6, 1967,

Int. Cl. B22d 17/04 US. Cl. 164-316 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A machine for producing small precision castings having a cam and rocker arm drive and wherein the pot or furnace is swingable. The valve structure that admits zinc to the nozzle is integrally formed with the pot, obviating the use of a gooseneck. The valve structure uses only a single ball check to govern intake and exhaust.

The machine of the present invention presents an ad vance in the art by providing a mechanically operated die casting machine which is extremely small in size compared to its prior art counterparts and which does away with the need of a goose-neck arrangement. The present machine features the integration of several previously separately manufactured members with the resulting reduction in manufacturing and maintenance costs. Moreover, its small mass and low weight reduce inertia of the moving parts whereby the speed of the machine is substantially accelerated over known types so that over one hundred castings per minute can be obtained.

According to the invention a machine for producing precision miniature castings comprising a housing; a cruciform; a four-way die guide mounted on said housing and adapted to contain at least a pair of dies in opposing relationship to one another; a pot pivotally mounted to said housing, a nozzle mounted on said pot adjacent said dies; valve means and conduit means in said pot, said conduit extending from said valve to said nozzle; drive means mounted on said housing adapted to actuate said dies and to pivot said pot in relation to said housing whereby said nozzle will be brought into and out of engagement with a cavity in said dies; and means actuated by said drive for effecting an injection from said pot into said dies.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate the device by way of example and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of the die casting machine according to the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional elevation view of the casting machine of FIGURE 1 taken along the lines 22 thereof; and

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the machine shown in FIGURES 1 and 2.

Referring to the drawings, a casting machine indicated generally at 1 includes a housing block 2, drive means 3,

injection pump 4 and a pot 5 pivotally mounted to the housing block 2. The complete machine 1 can be supported by a suitable frame structure, not shown, mounted on or from the housing block 2 and the drive means 3 may be rotated through a chain and sprocket arrangement (not shown) whereby the dies and cores and their associated actuating assemblies will be operated.

The housing block 2 constitutes the: main member of the die casting machine inasmuch as it is provided with extensible arms .10 supporting the drive means 3 as well as a further pair of arms 12 which pivotally support the pot 5. Furthermore, the housing has secured thereto an integrally formed four-way guide 13 of cruciform configuration having slidable therein a plurality of dies and cores 14 and 16 respectively, the branches of the guide 13 being provided with removable cover members 18 for the dies and 20 for the cores. The die and core guide can be removed from the housing 2 by means of screws 22 and therefore be easily and quickly replaced and maintained.

The drive means 3 includes a cam shaft 24 supported for rotation in the arms 10 by means of needle roller bearings 26. A plurality of lobes are detachabl secured to the cam shaft 24 and these c mprise die lobes 28 adjacent the outer portions of the arms 10 and, in the central portion of the shaft 24, a first lobe 30 for actuating one of the cores 16, a second lobe 32 for pivoting the pot 5 (FIGURE 3), and a third lobe 34 for actuating a microswitch 36 shown in FIGURE 3 for working the pump means 4. A pair of rocker arms 38 are rotatably supported as at 40 to the housing block 2, each rocker arm comprising a roller type follower 42 acting on the curve 43 of the die cams or lobes 28. The other ends of the rocker arms 38 are provided with adjustably mounted tappets 44 which bear against rollers 15 secured to the shanks of the dies 14. The dies and cores are opened by spring means (not shown) and are closed only by the lobes of cam shaft 24.

The cores .16 are each actuated by a cam shaft lobe, lobe 30 actuating a core by means f a roller type follower 46 mounted on the shank of the core. The remaining core is actuated by a further lobe 48 through the intermediary of a pair of rocker arms 50 and 52 which are pivotally connected together at '54. Arm '50 is provided at its other end with a roller type follower 56 which bears against the cam lobe 48 and arm 52 is pivotally mounted as at 58 to the housing block 2 of the machine. The end of the arm 52 remote from its pivotal connection with the arm 50 is detachably secured to the shank of the core 16 by means of a r011 pin 60.

The arms 12 of the housing block 2 provide means for mounting the pot 5 by way of cone bolts 62. As shown in FIGURE 2, the pot 5 is provided with pump means 4 including a cylinder 64, piston 66 reciprocated therein by means of an air cylinder 68, valve means 70 to control the flow of molten zinc into a chamber 72, and a delivery conduit 74 extending from the chamber 72 to a nozzle 76 detachably secured to the upper surface of the pot adjacent one end thereof. Shown in FIGURE 2, the end or tip of nozzle 76 is brought into operative alignment with a gate 78 in the face of the dies 14. It will be seen from FIGURES 1 and 3 that the nozzle is brought into and out of engagement with a gate by means of the cam lobe 32 acting on a roller 80 mounted on one end of an arm 82 projecting outwardly from the pot 5. The microswitch 36 which is actuated by the cam lobe 34 through a roller 84 and switch arm 86, controls the air cylinder 68 for timing injections of the zinc into the dies when the nozzle 76 is brought into engagement therewith. The valve means 70 may be of the same variety as described in the copending application No. 442,725 filed Nov. 25, 1965, now

Patent No. 3,364,981 issued Jan. 23, 1968, in which a single ball such as 88 is used to open and close a port '90 leading from the pot into the chamber 72. The plunger or piston 66 travels the smallest possible distance which corresponds substantially to the volume of molten zinc needed in the cavity of the die 14. The one-Way or single ball valve maintains zinc very close to the tip of the nozzle 76 inasmuch as on the upstroke of the piston 66, the latter fills the chamber 72 by lifting the ball 88 off its seat. On the downstroke of the piston 66, the ball 88 is pushed down onto its seat and simultaneously an injection of zinc is made from the nozzle 76 into the cavity of the die. Subsequently, the cam lobe 32 actuates the pot to break the seal between the nozzle 76 and the dies 14 sufficiently to break the gate 76, so there is no back and forth turbulence in the conduit 74. Alternately, the presently described machine can use the side ball type of valve described in the copending application No. 442,725.

It will be appreciated that the present casting machine 1 has done away with the goose-neck type of injection pump normally mounted to the machine so that it was immersed in the molten zinc of a pot. The exclusion of this unit and the incorporation of the Valve means and conduit and nozzle in the pot itself instead of in a gooseneck structure substantially reduces both the cost of the machine and the maintenance and operation thereof.

I claim:

1. A machine for producing precision minitature castings comprising a housing; a cruciform, four-way die guide mounted on said housing and containing at least a pair of dies in opposing relationship to one another; a pot pivotally mounted to said housing, a nozzle mounted on said pot adjacent said dies; valve means and conduit means in said pot, said conduit extending from said valve to said nOZZle; a drive mechanism mounted on said housing including first means to actuate said dies to operative and inoperative positions and further means to pivot said pot in relation to said housing whereby said nozzle will be brought into and out of engagement wtih a cavity in said dies; and means actuated by said drive mechanism for efiecting an injection from said pot into said dies.

2. A die casting machine according to claim 1 wherein said drive mechanism comprises a rotatable shaft mounted on said housing, a plurality of cam lobes adjustably mounted on said shaft, a first pair of said cam lobes actuating said dies, a further cam lobe for actuating said pot and a cam lobe for actuating said means for effecting injections into said dies.

3. A die casting machine according to claim 2 wherein said drive mechanism includes rocker shafts mounted on said housing for transmitting movement of said cam lobes to said dies.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,964,324 6/1934 Korsmo 164318 3,364,981 1/1968 Perrella et al 164-339 X 3,452,805 7/1969 Morin 164154 FOREIGN PATENTS 693,700 7/1953 Great Britain.

J. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner ROBERT D. BALDWIN, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 164-342 

